England midfielder has risen through the ranks under coach Jason Lee and will
be key figure during World Cup

There will be two members of the same household playing for different countries at the Hockey World Cup and one of them, Susannah Townsend, is describing how it will feel to play against her girlfriend, Dirkie Chamberlain, when England women meet South Africa next Friday.

“Emotionally, she will always be there for me, but she is the opposition,” says the England midfielder, who will be a pivotal part of Jason Lee’s World Cup squad in The Hague over the next two weeks.

If Townsend is keen to put her feelings on the back burner ahead of next Friday, England’s third group stage game, then it’s down to her forward-thinking philosophy, one entwined with ‘front foot’ written on her hockey stick.

Townsend admits that London “came too early for me”; her attacking aspects were there, but defensively she was off the pace. Now, her all-round, visionary game has propelled her to secure a regular berth under Lee after she was first called-up in 2011 for the EuroHockey Nations Championships.

“Although it was a massive knock to miss London, it never stopped me believing that I would make it,” she says. “The strides that I made in those two years were massive. If I carried on doing the same thing, by taking some time away and refocusing, it would pay off and thankfully it has.”

Confident and forever a Canterbury player – she will make a return to her beloved Kent side next season after one year with Reading – Townsend enthuses over Lee’s philosophy that “everybody contributes”.

“We are a squad of 28 and 18 get selected. It’s not necessarily a starting 11, more that 18 get to play minutes on the pitch,” she says. “What Jason sees in me is that I like influencing games and I like to be a game-changer. I want to be consistent at tournaments and that is my main focus at the moment.”

The front foot mantra is clearly paying dividends. “We had a talk in the squad on what helps us as a player. I had one of my poorer games recently against Germany in the Four Nations. Susie Gilbert came on as a sub and said ‘come on Suse, front foot’. It is little things like that help completely.”

Against South Africa on June 6, she will adopt the same aspects. Whatever happens against “the opposition”, namely Chamberlain, her 26 year-old partner, all will be forgotten after 70 minutes.

Dirkie Chamberlain goes to ground against Hannah Macleod in 2012

“It’s tricky as people ask us how we cope,” Townsend admits. “We do leave things on the pitch and we share a hug at the end – even if I have elbowed her.

“Our secrecy is that we don’t share anything because we can’t. Emotionally she will always be there for me, but she is the opposition. I have played against her before so it won’t be a new thing.

“What we’ve struggled with in the past is if one of us has had a good tournament and that you don’t get affected by it.”

Meanwhile, England will have to get used to playing without the services of Helen Richardson-Walsh. The experienced midfielder failed to make Lee’s squad after her brave bid to recover in time from back surgery, but Townsend believes it is a chance for younger players to showcase their potential on the world stage.

She says: “Helen is one of the most skilful players on and off the ball. You could say that is one of the things we will miss but there others who are going to have to step up and to perform.

“It will be a massive test for those who haven’t played in big tournaments. But that’s good, they will have to fill in those potential holes that Helen leaves.”

There was an emotional piece of the jigsaw missing when Townsend left Canterbury for Reading too. She admits that she departed “for all the right reasons” – to play with Reading’s raft of international players to gain more practice – and it is a decision she has few regrets about.

“But I am a Canterbury girl and I play all my best hockey there,” she says. “It’s where my heart is and I need to feel playing for my club.”

Just like Townsend will do when running out on Sunday lunchtime in her debut World Cup game against USA.